1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to collecting devices, and more specifically, to a collecting device used to collect refuse as animal droppings or any matter thrown on the ground in a sanitary and convenient manner that allows the collector to keep hands clean.
2. Description of Prior Art
In many municipalities in the world, there are laws requiring all animal owners to remove the feces left by the animal on public area. To comply with such laws, animal owners who like to carry their pets for a walk at public places are particularly concerned about how they can remove their pets'feces in a sanitary and convenient way.
To do the task in a sanitary and convenient way, a collecting device that is easy to carry and allows the user's hands to be far away from the feces so as to keep the user's hands clean when removing the feces is in demand. To respond to such a demand, there are proposed numerous collecting devices. U.S. Pat. No. 5,320,393 to Cortinas, for instance, discloses a refuse collecting device that is easy to carry and can collect refuse in a sanitary and convenient way. Such collecting device can be used to collect animal feces and place them in a disposable bag. To dispose of the collected feces, the bag can be removed from the collecting device and then thrown away.
There are, however, several drawbacks to the Cortinas' device. First, since the expanding means (30 in the drawing) is always movable along with the slidable tube (26), the expanding means (30) will move upwards concurrently with the slidable tube (26) whenever the user tries to collect another pile of feces, whereby the already collected pile of feces within the bag might be released and then fall off. The bag should therefore be installed first in order to collect another pile of feces. There exists therefore a need for an improved device that can hold the bag immovable all the time so as to allow the refuse collecting device to be capable of collecting refuse repeatedly until the bag is full. Second, the Cortinas' device is useful only when collecting feces on flat ground. On rugged ground, there would be remnants left in a concavity that can not be collected at once into the bag. Third, the Cortinas' device has a grip that is not ergonomically comfortable for the user to hold by hand and awkward to operate.